Through the Eyes of Purity of Essence
by Vampiric Ant
Summary: An attack on a Terran planet from the POV of a Zerg Hydralisk.
1. Of Obedience and Bloodlust

Disclaimer: I don't own Starcraft.

Through the Eyes of Purity's Essence

Chapter 1: Obedience and Bloodlust

The call had come out. The Zerg Servant heard it and began slithering from the Hive towards battle. It knew nothing other than the Overmind, master of the Zerg, and the Overmind's will. The Servant was a Hydralisk - the perfect killing machine of the Swarm – born and bred to serve the Overmind and the Swarm. Its jaws had been evolved to tear enemies of the Overmind apart. Its claws were warped to annihilate those who opposed the Swarm. Its skin hardened into an fortress-like carapace to withstand the puny weaponry of the ones who resisted the power of the Zerg. Its mind fuelled by bloodlust, malice, and rage. The Servant was indeed the perfectly evolved child of the Zerg.

Little did the Servant know that its race of origin had fed not on the flesh and blood of its enemies - but on various green grasses and shrubs. The Slothiens they had been called. The dominant herbivore species on the home world - dominant, yet delicate, fragile, peaceful. Then the day came when the Swarm arrived. Seeing the potential of the grazing Slothiens, the Overmind supercharged their evolutionary path - mutating them into beings of death and destruction. The Servant did not know this, and even if it had, it would have cared none the less. For it was a servant of the Swarm and the Overmind - nothing more, nothing less.

The Servant snaked off the nurturing creep of the Hive Cluster and joined it's fellow brethren: Zerglings, Mutalisks, Defilers, Overlords, Scourge, Guardians, and Hydralisks like itself - all servants of the Overmind. They were to conquer a the capital city of the planet Singripa Prime - a key resource holding of a race who called themselves "Terran Confederacy". The Servant had done battle with these Terrans before on the planet Dylar IV. The Terrans there had fought with what others would consider valor and bravery. But the Servant could not see this. It could not comprehend what valor or bravery were. And even if it could, the Servant would have dismissed these terms as nothing but futile and pathetic. The Servant saw the Terrans as nothing but a frail prey. Whatever interest the Overmind had in these creatures was beyond the Servant's understanding, but the Servant did not need to understand the will of the Overmind. It was not its place to question the Overmind, for obedience was all that existed.

Suddenly, the Overlords transmitted a telepathic command to the ravenous minions from the Cerebrate Araq of the Jormungand Brood. The Servant processed the command as a signal word: _Begin_.

The Servant and its 500,000 comrades were on the move. They proceeded towards their prey. They intended to leave none in their path alive. A few might be spared, if the Overmind willed it, to inducted into the Swarm, to become children and servants of the Overmind. The Zerglings advanced in front, while the Servant and its brothers would protect them from behind. The Defilers guarding their flank would help to ensure the Servant's safety - even though the Servant did not care for its own saftey The Mutalisks and Scourge riding the clouds would hunt down anything the Terrans sent by air, while the Guardians hovering above would eliminate any potential threat coming from the ground. The Overlords guarding the task force's left and right would guarantee no cloaked menace would do battle with the Swarm unseen.

As the 500,000 deadly Zerg approached the city, a patrol of twenty Terran marines crossed their paths. Immediately upon seeing the task force, the marines foolishly opened fire. Several stray bullets skimmed the Servant's armor, but had no effect - not even a single dent upon the Servant's hardened carapace. A pack of Zerglings launched themselves on their dog-like limbs at the marines, who in return concentrated a steady fire of projectiles. Three Zerglings dropped dead, while five more were wounded. This did not matter, as all servants of the Overmind were expendable. The Servant and his brethren knew this. The marines could not stop the inevitable as six of them were pounced upon by the rampaging Zerglings. The Zerglings' claws ripped through armor, cloth, skin, flesh and bone as the Terrans' muscle and nerve tissues were torn from the bodies. The Terrans continued to fight though it was useless. Now, it was the Servant's turn to kill.

The Servant and its comrades advanced upon the little group of Terrans, and with a wild fury, unleashed a torrent of deadly spines. Nine marines fell screaming to the ground with spikes embedded in their heads, chests, guts, arms, and legs. The Servant itself had struck down four of the marines, but unlike its comrades, had been careful to merely strike the legs and arms of the Terrans. It wanted its prey to suffer before the Servant delivered the deadly blow by its scythe-like claws and nightmarish jaws. The remaining five marines turned and fled toward the city. The Servant did not bother chasing them, since the retreating Terrans would soon be dispatched by the Mutalisks and Guardians, besides there were four wounded Terrans the Servant had to deal with.

Approaching the dying bodies of its prey, the Servant selected the one with a spine in his shoulder and hip. Immediately, a claw cleaved through the wounded Terran's backside killing him instantly. The Servant then selected a second wounded Terran, and slammed both its enormous claws into the Terran's stomach and chest, lifted him up into the air. Terran blood flowed down the Servant's claws, and dripped to the ground. The Servant took in the aroma with a lustful snarl. All Zerg were fond of the smell of fresh blood, but the Servant and its brothers desired for blood the most – especially from a living victim. The Servant longed to drink the blood of its next victim. But as it dropped the carcass of the second Terran, the Servant saw that one of the third wounded Terran was hobbling away. With a cry of anger, the Servant prepared to unleash a spine, when suddenly the Terran fell dead to the ground, his chest melting away. One of the Guardians had picked him off. However, the Servant felt no shame in this, as it was incapable of generating such a feeling.

The Servant proceeded to the fourth and final wounded Terran lying on his stomach. Reaching out with a claw, the Servant pulled the human onto his back. As the Servant slithered right upon the Terran's almost motionless body, it lowered its head right upon the Terran's face, and prepared itself for the kill. Suddenly, the Terran marine whipped out a small semi-automatic handgun and fired repeatedly at the Servant's head. Most of the little projectiles bounced harmlessly off the Servant's armor-encased jaws, but one of the bullets pierced the unprotected inside of Servant's upper mouth. From the penetrated Zerg flesh, a stream of fresh blood oozed onto the Servant tongue, and although it had felt a brief moment of pain, pain was nothing compared to the taste of blood… even if it was the Servant's own blood. The Terran's hand which held the little weapon, was cleaved cleanly off the Terran's arm. The claws of the Servant were the result of the Overmind's ingenious evolution after all. The Terran moaned with pain and grasped its bloody right arm, now freed of the hand. As the Servant looked down upon the dying Terran, it allowed its saliva, mixed with its own blood, to drip on the Terran's ruined armor. The teeth, tongue, and jaws of the Servant were the last things this Terran would ever see. The Servant then looked into the directly eyes of its hapless prey and saw naked fear. Fear was something the Servant had come to expect, for all should have feared the Servant and its Zerg brethren.

Opening its mighty jaws of death, the Servant brought them down upon the Terran's head and snapped them shut. The skeletal tissue crumbled to dust under the pressure of the Zerg jaws. The Servant tore the head of Terran from the neck, and allowed the bloody noggin to roll to the back of the Servant's tongue. As Terran blood sank onto the Servant's tongue, the Hydralisk's mutant sensory buds absorbed the liquid. Savoring the taste, the Servant shifted its head and human blood flowed throughout the Servant's mouth. Allowing a hiss of satisfaction to escape its mouth, the Servant drank the blood of its enemy, and intended to do so, until the Terran skull had been depleted of every last drop.

Just then, the Overlords relayed a command from Araq to the Servant and its comrades. The Servant processed the command as a simple message:

_Terran reinforcements approaching from the city. Engage and destroy them immediately._

Although frustrated that it had not consumed all the remaining blood, the Servant knew that pleasure was irrelevant when obedience was called upon. For the Cerebrates spoke the will of the Overmind, and no servant of the Swarm would dispute the Overmind. Spitting out the Terran head, the Servant rejoined its fellow Hydralisks. The Zerglings, Mutalisks, Scourge, Defilers, and Guardians also regrouped and prepared to engage the Terran deffenders. The Overlords telepathically transmitted scenes of Terran activity around the city to the Zerg warriors:

Terran marines were climbing into armored bunkers surrounding the city by the hundreds. The bunkers themselves were surrounded by three automatic missile turrets each. The city gates opened and let loose thousands of Terran war machines including Vultures, Goliaths, and even colossal Siege Tanks. From the sky, squadrons of Wraith fighters sped towards the Zerg task force. Dropships too flew from the sky, unloading tens of thousands of Firebats wielding plasma-flame throwers. The Firebats joined the oncoming wave of Terran machines.

The Zerg warriors prepared themselves to engange the Terran forces, with the Zerglings once again leading the charge, the Servant and its brothers behind them, and the Defilers and Guardians protecting their rear. The Mutalisks and Scourge launched themselves towards approaching masses of Wraiths.

Already, the Servant could smell fresh blood – the blood that would be spilled on both sides for the Overmind and the Swarm. Whether the blood tasted would be the Terrans' or its own, the Servant knew it would be satisfying.

TBC…

A/N: Okay, so what do you think? Too much? Too little? Please review.


	2. Of Flesh and Scrap Metal

Disclaimer: I don't own the rights to Starcraft in anyway.

Through the Eye's of Purity's Essence

Chapter 2: Of Flesh and Scrap Metal

The Servant and its Zerg brethren continued their advance upon the Terran armies. The Overlords relayed more orders from Araq to the Zerg warriors. The Servant as usual processed the commands as simple messages:

_Their center is retreating. It is a trick. They intend to lure us into a trap. We must make them believe we are fooled. Continue advance. Await orders._

The Servant obeyed, as did the others. Purposely falling into a trap would certainly mean death for those caught, but that did not matter. The Servant and its brethren knew only obedience… and the taste of blood. After all, obedience would bring victory to the Overmind and the Swarm, and blood would further their fury and rage. But a Zerg minion's life was a luxury that could sacrificed – for a purpose, or for no purpose – it did not matter.

The warriors were very close to the Terran front. A great gap lay within the Terrans' lines, but it was bait, which the Zerg warriors already knew. They had received no further orders from the Cerebrate, and continued to close the gap between them and their enemies. And at last, Zerg and Terran clashed.

Masses of Zerglings flung themselves at the Firebats. Many of the Zerglings were torn to pieces by the firepower of the Goliaths. The ones that reached the line of Firebats were almost immediately incinerated. The surviving Zerglings, however, proceeded to tear into the Firebats, clawing at their faces and biting at their suits. As, Vultures swooped in, the Servant and its brothers received an order to deal with them. The Servant advanced forth upon the wave of Vultures and unleashed a volley of spines, specifically target the rides themselves. Two Terrans were impaled in the chests and dropped from their vehicles. As the Servant continued to fire, the others Hydralisks followed suite. Soon, dozens of Vultures, with their drivers gone or slumped over the controls, were spinning out of control and crashing into to others. It was a delightful to see such chaos amongst their enemies.

Then two large bullets struck the Servant, piercing it's left shoulder armor. More than a hundred Goliaths had positioned themselves at the Terran Front and were blazing away at the Hydralisks' positions. Several Hydralisks fell dead riddled with heavy shells. The Servant again was struck, this time in the chest. Despite the great pain and hissed with raged, but continue to fire at the Vultures. Another command from Araq resonated in the Servant's mind: _Target Goliaths. The others shall provide you with cover._

The Servant and the other Hydralisks ceased firing upon the Vultures, and realigned their shoulder place to target the Goliaths. The Goliaths were hit repeatedly by waves of needle spines, but most of the spines bounced of the Goliaths' specially reinforced hall. The war machines returned fire, showering the Hydralisks with an onslaught of bullets. Bleeding Hydralisks collapsed upon the grounds, their blood soaking the sands. Still, the Hydralisks continued their assault. Their spines managed to penetrate a few of the Goliaths' hulls now. Then a massive cloud of tiny insects surrounded the Servant and the others. The Goliaths' bullets were unable to pierce much of the thick cloud. The Defilers had encompassed them all within the could. Deadly spores were launched at the Goliaths as well. The spores corroded the reinforced hulls. Now these Terrans could easily be dealt with.

Shrieking cries of battle, the Servant and its brothers renewed a relentless volley of spines. The hulls of the Goliaths, now damaged severely by Defilers spores, proved no match for the Zerg. The spines easily penetrated the Goliaths' damaged cockpits killing or wounding the inhabitants within and sending the controls in showers of sparks. The Servant knew exactly where the weak points were, for Araq had once again sent a message relaying such information. Many of the Goliaths in the front lines were now motionless and fuming black clouds of smoke, for their inhabitants lying dead or wounded from the wrath of Servant and its brothers. The Servant itself had not been hurt since the Defilers had taken action. Now its wounds were regenerating. Through the cloud, it saw the Goliaths starting to retreat. At least four hundred Zerglings charged the great gap of the Terran formations, and began to systematically eradicate the Firebats and Vultures.

Suddenly, the ground exploded amongst the Hydralisks. Several were flung into the air, and others were ripped apart. Almost a hundred Zerglings in the Terran center were blown to smoldering pieces. The survivors would have continued their attack, had Araq not ordered the Zerglings to retreat from the Terran center. The Overlords relayed another command from Araq:

_Siege Tanks have locked onto your positions. They are at the very rear of the Terran lines. Move into the gap in the center of the Terran lines._

The Servant and its brothers obeyed, though it was not without pain and death. The Defiler's cloud was little use against the shockwave cannons of the Terran Siege Tanks. The tanks also were well out of range of the Servant. Many fellow Hydralisks were blown away they advanced into the center. The Overlords relayed more commands to the Swarm. The Zerglings concentrated their attack upon the Terran's left and right flanks, while the Defilers joined the Hydralisks at the center. Meanwhile in sky, Guardians were drawing fire away from the Servant and its brothers by spitting torrents of acid globs upon the Goliaths. The Mutalisks lashed out at the speedy Wraiths, while the Scourge gave their lives to destroy multiple Wraiths as well. The Zerglings fought viciously against the Firebats, Marines, and Goliaths guarding the Terran flanks, but even with seemingly countless numbers, ruined bodies of Zergling kept piled up on top each other. The Zerg flyers too were taking a heavy toll as the Wraiths ripped through the Mutalisks and Guardians hurling Gemini missiles and sending the airborne beasts to the ground. The Goliaths protecting the Terran army's rear used their Hellfire rockets to take down Scourge before the suicidal warriors could reach their targets.

The Goliaths and Siege Tanks continued to ravage the Zerg force at the center. The Servant watched its brothers fall under the volleys of bullets or heavy shells, for now they were taking fire from three sides. The Defilers were creating protective clouds amongst the Hydralisks, but the dark clouds could not stop all the firepower of the Goliaths. Other Defliers attempted to release their corrosive spores, but were shot apart by the Goliaths' automatic weaponry as soon as the Defliers had slithered to the front lines. Furthermore, 120mm explosive shells from the Siege Tanks constantly pierced the protective clouds and brought death to many of the Zerg warriors. Still, despite their mounting casualties, the Servant and the others continued to fight with spines and claws warring down many of the surrounding Goliaths until the machines collapsed or were rendered inoperable. Araq had not ordered them to withdraw, and so they would continue the fight - no matter how many Zerg would die.

Once, the Servant managed to use it claws to grabble a nearby Goliath. Using all the strength within its augmented muscles, the Servant raised the machine above its head and hurled it into the crowd of Terrans. The Goliaths crashed down amongst the Terran formation knocking seven other Goliaths off their legs. This was followed by a massive explosion which sent marines, Firebats, and pieces of metal flying. The Servant was momentarily pleased with its handiwork, and then it cast that thought aside and proceeded to fight alongside the rest of its brothers once more.

Then a single tank shell burst less than 10 meters away from the Servant. The Hydralisks less than 5 meters away were blown to blood and guts. The Servant raised it claws to shield it's head from the wave of fire and dust. The Servant was knocked off it's tail, and went sliding across the bloody sands. Snarling with fury, the Servant attempted to get back up, but found it unusually hard. It quickly discovered the problem – the Servant's entire left arm, from the shoulder plates and below, was gone. It had either had torn off from the blast, or simply incinerated. The Servant shrieked with pain and rage, but with difficulty it managed to right itself.   
  
As the Servant prepared to charge back into battle, it smelled blood – it's own. Flickering out it's tongue, the Servant caught a few drops of blood, and with that the Servant's power and rage were renewed once more. Its left arm was nothing important now, as long as the Servant could keep killing for the Overmind and the Swarm. Slithering back to the front of the Zerg lines, it released a storm of spines from it's right shoulder plate at a damaged Goliath's cockpit and forced the spines into the armored windshield. Blood splattered against the windshield as the Terran operator was impaled, and the Goliath ceased firing. Smoke and flames bellowed out of the cockpit, for the Servant's spines had damaged numerous controls and electrical systems. The bipedal war machine issued more flames and sparks, and finally toppled over on it's side. The flaming wreck, however, was ignored by the other Goliaths, which continued to blast away at the Zerg warriors. This time, the Servant was hit over a dozen times in its chest plate, and three more bullets struck it's left eye which issued a fountain of Zerg blood. Now, the Servant was blind on its left side. Screaming anger, the Servant returned fire although its angle of vision had been reduced by half. But, the Servant was still a servant of the Overmind, and it would have kept fighting if both eyes had been destroyed.

The Siege Tanks continued to pummel Zerg at the center with impunity pinning the Swarms down. The marines, Firebats and Goliaths held back the Zerglings at their flanks. Meanwhile in the sky, the airborne Zerg were continuing to dogfight the Wraiths, but now the Wraiths were beginning to outmaneuver and outnumber the Mutalisks, Scourge, and Guardians. As Goliaths and Hydralisks fired and fell at the center, it seemed for a moment as if the Terrans might win, and the Swarm would fail in this battle.

Then the Servant received a new order:

_Baelrog Queens are approaching. Protect them at all cost and victory will be assured!_

At least five hundred Zerg Queens swarmed down amongst the opposing armies. Mutalisks and Scourge surrounded them instantly, protecting them from the Wraiths. As the Queens maneuvered behind the Terran formations they came just above the line of Siege Tanks. Then one of them spat a glob of spores at a tank. The glob stuck to the tank's hull began to melt its way through. A scream of terror was heard from inside the tank, and seconds the flame and sparks were issued from the vehicle. Out from the hull breach came a pair of Broodlings, which scurried to attack the Terran army. Immediately, the other Queens launched their spores at the tanks, bring death to the humans inside, and giving life to the tiny hatchlings within the globs. Tank after tank went up in smoke, sparks, and flame, and Broodlings. A few of the Terran operators were able to escape, but most succumbed to the hungry globs and their hatchlings. As the line of tanks began to crumble, some of the Siege Tanks activated their mobile modes, and began to retreat. However, out of the protection of the Goliaths and Wraiths, most of the stray tanks were easily hunted down by Mutalisks.

Many Goliaths at the rear abandoned their positions in a desperate attempt to save what tanks were left, but in doing so they left the Terran infantry to teeth and claws of the ravenous Zerglings. The Goliaths fired their rockets at the Queens killing a few, but the Guardians, responding to the orders of the Araq, showered the Goliaths with acid driving them away from the Queens. Meanwhile, at the center, with the threat of artillery gone, the Servant and its brothers were no longer pinned down. The masses of Hydralisks clawed and bit their way through the Goliaths, tearing the legs and missile launchers off. The Defliers now having successfully reached the very front of Zerg lines, showered the enemy with corrosive spores. The Servant then sent a volley of spikes at point blank range, hammering three plagued Goliaths. Two exploded as the Servant hit the primary power generators within their cockpits. The other machine tripped and collasped as the Servant impaled the electrical wiring within its legs. Using its remaining claw, the Servant tore the face off another Goliath's cockpit. The operator struggled to get out, but the Servant plunged its jaws into the smoldering machine and dragged the hapless human out by the leg. Snapping its mighty jaws, the Servant tore the corpse in half, and made sure that the Terran's blood was spilled upon the is tongue. As it feasted upon the Terran's warm blood, the Servant saw its brothers advance forward annihilating all in their path. Meanwhile, the Terrans were holding their left flank, but the right flank was crumbling to the countless waves of Zerglings. And now, Araq had ordered another three thousand Zerglings and Hydralisks from the Hive Clusters to join the attack. Streaking across the desert lands, fresh Zerg reinforcements swarmed towards the battlefield.

The maneuverable Queens, having dealt with the tanks, proceeded to the skies, where Mutalisks and Scourge were battling Wraiths. The Overlords relayed new messages from Araq to the flyers. The Scourge pulled out, and the Mutalisks began forcing the Wraiths together. Although more than half of the remaining Mutalisks died in this task, soon nearly all the Wraiths had been herded together. The Queens sprayed the Terran flyers with thick slime that covered the metal wings, and even jammed the engines. The Wraiths were going nowhere fast now. Then the Overlords sent out another message. Every remaining Scourge raced toward the slime-covered Wraiths. The suicidal warriors plowed themselves into the helpless Wraiths ripping them to pieces. Thus the little Scourges gave their lives to fulfill the Overmind's will.. The sky was momentarily covered with a series of intense explosions. As the smoke cleared from the sky, a shower of flaming metal pieces descended upon the creatures below. While the Zerg warriors and Terran machines were not harmed by this fiery rain, the Terran marines and Firebats were forced to take cover. The ones that didn't were crushed under the larger pieces of debris or impaled by the smaller, shaper fragments. The Mutalisks scattered to hunt down the surviving Wraiths. For the most part, the Terran air force had be decimated. The ground forces too would soon fall to the Zerg. The tide had now turned in favor of the Swarm.

The remains of the Terran army began a massive retreat towards a new position to regroup. Just as the Servant and its brethren were about to pursue, the Overlords relayed another order:

_Do not pursue. Hold position._

The Servant obeyed and did not advance. Unfortunately, there were no wounded Terrans to be found, only dead and decaying ones. However, the Servant knew it would get its fill soon.

An enormous convoy of Overlords arrived from orbit. Upon reaching the surface, their ventral sacks opened and released the behemoth Ultralisks. The mighty creatures massed together – ten thousand Ultralisks in all! With a tremendous roar, the thundering Ultralisks stormed forward. The Servant watched as the stampede of Ultralisks swiftly moved around the Hydralisk and its brothers and proceeded toward the regrouping Terrans. The Overlords relayed to the other Zerg what was happening on the Terran front. Terrans were screaming and panicking as the Ultralisks came further. A disordered line of Goliaths open fired on the Ultralisks, but the bullets merely bounced off the impenetrable armor of the Ultralisks. The behemoth warriors were now twenty meters from the Terran front. The Goliaths continued their pathetic attack. A couple of the Ultralisks fell dead, but the rest continued. Five meters now. And then with a terrible cry, the lead Ultralisk raised its head and brought its scythe-like tusks upon the Terrans. Four Goliaths were sent flying. Two more were crushed beneath the Ultralisk's massive feet. The other Ultralisks tore into Terran formation killing as they went. Machines and infantry were knocked into the air, crushed, or simply torn to pieces. Like a tornado, the stampede of Ultralisks ripped through the remnants of the Terran army with no stopping. At last, the Terrans realized they had been defeated and began a retreat towards the city. But the humans and their war machines could not outrun the raging Ultralisks. In the end, less than a hundred Terrans made it back the city's defense perimeter. The Terran army had been defeated. The Swarm was victorious.

Though, it was victorious at a heavy cost. Over thirty percent of the Zerg minions was gone. It did not matter though, for all warriors and minions of the Swarm could be sacrificed and replaced. All Zerg fought and died for the Overmind and the Swarm.

The Servant and its brothers hissed with approval. They then received another order:

_All minions regroup. Reinforcements on their way. Prepare to assault the city._

As the Servant and its brothers slithered to meet the Ultralisks, the Servant could feel the wounds in its chest plate regenerating. However, its left arm and left eye would never grow back. Not even Zerg regeneration could bring . But the Servant did not care. It still had weapons to fight the Overmind's enemies. The Servant obeyed the will of the Overmind. The Overmind had willed for total victory on this planet, and the Servant had brought a victory. But the Overmind's will had not been fulfilled – yet. The Servant and its brethren knew that the Terran city must be conquered. Only then would total victory be achieved and the Overmind's will satisfied. The Servant prepared itself for one last battle.

TBC…

A/N: Yay! I finally got this chapter done. I'm going to start working on the third and final chapter soon.

2nd A/N: I'm done revising this chapter for grammar. I'm going to start working or the third and final chapter soon.


	3. Of Victory and Death

Disclaimer: I don't own the rights to Starcraft.

A/N: First of all, sorry this took so long to update. I'm a sophomore in high school now, and I got packed with LOTS of homework in the first few week of school. Anyway, here's the third and final chapter of _Through the Eyes of Purity's Essence_. Enjoy!

(And please excuse any grammar mistakes. I will try to revise this chapter as soon as possible.)

Through the Eyes of Purity's Essence

Chapter 3: Victory and Death

The Servant slithered into position amongst its brothers. The Zerg Swarm was preparing itself for one final assault upon the Terran city - one final assault to total victory. As the individual minions regrouped into their formations, more reinforcements from the Central Hive sped across the battle-scarred desert to meet the Zerg forces. The Ultralisks gathered at the front, the Zerglings behind them. Other warriors were loading themselves into the evolved ventral sacs of the Overlords. The Servant and the other Hydralisks arranged themselves behind the Zerglings, with the Defilers at the rear. Above in the sky, newly born Scourge, Mutalisks, and Guardians were joining the flyers who had survived the previous battle. The flying Zerg beasts took their positions amongst the rest of the Swarm.

Already Araq was transmitting orders to the Servant:

_Follow and protect those leading the charge closely. They must reach the city perimeter. When the city walls are breached, hold your position just outside the city perimeter and provide cover for our warrior at the front. They must be allowed to gain a foothold within the city. Once a foothold has been established, advance into the city with others. Eradicate all resistance. _

The Servant prepared itself for the Araq's order to attack. The last of the reinforcements took their positions amongst the attack force. Now, all was ready.

Araq gave the order: _Begin_

The Servant obeyed as did the rest of the Swarm. The ravenous Zerg warriors advanced forward toward the Terran city. The flyers above speeding forth, past the ground warriors, speeding toward key defense positions around the city. The Mutalisks lashed out at artillery pieces, while the Guardians blasted automatic missile launchers and bunkers. The Terrans returned fire, but the numbers of Zerg flyers, now reinforced with by the thousands, was too great. Glave worms from Mutalisks ripped up Terran marines and cannons. The Guardians' acid globs melted holes in the Terran bunkers. Araq then ordered the flyers to pull back. The preliminary strike had caused enough damage. The Zerg ground warriors would take care of what was left.

The ground forces charged towards the remains of the smoldering bunkers. Immediately, most of the Terran infantry panicked a fled toward the city. Just as the Swarm was about to sweep away the Terran resistance, Araq ordered: _Halt!_

The Overlords scouting the area ahead had uncovered a hidden death trap, consisting of many of buried spider mines. The deadly little explosive devices were less than thirty kilometers from the bunker lines. As the Overlords drifted forward, revealing hundreds of more mines, at least fifty small dome-like structures emerged of the sandy ground in middle of the minefield. Seconds later, the top of each structure split open to reveal a hidden array of stinger missiles. A volley of missiles were fired at the Overlord scouts, punching holes in their carapaces, and inflicting severe damage to the much needed Zerg-enhanced sensory organs. The lumbering airborne beasts could do little to avoid torrent of explosive projectile weapons. The wounded Overlords moaned in agony and drifted back to safety. It appeared now that an aerial bombardment would cost too much time and resources.

The Servant and its brothers awaited the next order. Would they search for away around the field, or would they simply plunge themselves to their deaths? And whatever that order was, the Servant and the others would obey - without question or reason or care.

At last, a new order came from Araq: _There are not enough devices to stop us. Go forth warriors of the Swarm and continue your advance towards the city. Maintain formations. Flyers will provide as much support as possible. Do not let the field stand in your way. Create a path of blood and sacrifice. Now go! _

Rampaging forward, the Zerg warriors marched upon inevitable death itself. The heavy Ultralisks lead the charge as usual, with the Zerglings closely behind. The Servant and its brothers followed them into the minefield. Many Zerg leading the charge would most certainly die, but a Zerg servant lived only to serve the Overmind's will. Every Zerg servant would do whatever the Overmind willed. And every Zerg servant would die if the Overmind willed it. As the Swarm stormed into the fields, a loud beep pierced the desert sky. A small, four-legged, metalic ball popped from the sands and scuttled toward the Zerg horde. It hurled itself through the air and crashed into one of the Ultralisk's front legs. Microseconds later, an explosion ripped across the Ultralisk's leg, splintering the armored shell, burning apart layers of tendons, muscles, and nerves within. The concussion wave also shattered the monstrous skeletal interior of the leg. The Ultralisk began to stumbled and bellow in rage and pain, but continued forth, for three out of four legs could still function.

Dozens of more four-legged balls dug themselves out and skittered toward the oncoming Zerg. Many of the Ultralisk warriors leading the charge lost flesh, blood, legs, and tusks. Over a dozen finally succumbed to their injuries and collapsed dead in a cloud of dust and sand. Soon, spider mines were also viciously assaulting the right and left of the Zerg formations, blasting away dozens of Zerglings at once. The Servant and its brothers in the center seemed protected and safe. But it soon became apparent that this was not such when one mine bounced off a Zergling's carapace instead of detonating, and detonated over the heads of the Servant and its brothers. The thick skulls of three Hydralisks, only ten meters away from the Servant, were blown open while four other Hydralisks were wounded. But the warriors continued forward, carelessly sacrificing themselves - all for the Overmind and the Swarm.

Meanwhile, two hundred Mutalisks swooped down, keeping low to the ground. The underground missile pods revealed themselves and released their stinger missiles. Although many the Mutalisks were killed by the barrage of missiles, the Servant's targets revealed themselves. With a collectively raging battle shriek, the warriors lunged forward at the pods. Despite Zerg falling by the hundreds now, the Children of the Overmind reached their targets. Nearly all the pods were crushed instantly under the feet of the great Ultralisks. The missile pods that survived that Ultralisk stampede were left to be ripped apart by the claws of the Zerglings and Hydralisks. With the fields' anti-air defenses down, a new wave of Mutalisks now swept over the minefield, raking the sands with their deadly glave worms. The glave worms cut deep into the ground - sometimes running into nothing, but other times hitting hidden spider mines. The ground was vomiting up explosions as the Mutalisks continued their air sweeps. Finally, the Zerg had cleared the field.

The Servant hissed a battle cry as it neared closer and closer towards its destined goal. It's functional eye turned directly toward the city now it full sight. It could almost smell fresh vitcims only a thirty kilometers ahead. Then its eye caught the sight of hundreds of fiery objects shooting forth from the city. The ground forces were now under artillery fire. The flaming trails rose higher and higher, and then swiftly came hurling down. Ten flaming shells crashed down upon the heads of the Ultralisks, wounding or killing dozens. The other shells tore holes in the ranks of Zerglings, Hydralisks, and Defilers sending the Zerg minions into the oblivion by the hundreds. Even before the smoke lifted, the Zerg came under another artillery barrage, followed by a third one. Thousands of more Zerg died under the series of terrible explosions. The Servant watched as many of its brothers' were incinerated - sacrifices that were necessary to ensure victory for the Overmind. Wave after wave of Terran artillery rained down upon the Zerg army, but with Araq sending even more warriors to the city, what good could little pieces of exploding metal do against millions of the children of the Overmind and the Swarm? Finally, after twenty minutes of enduring fiery rain and sacrificing over six thousand servants, the Zerg forces reached the abandoned bunker line. They were too close to the city to be stopped now by anything the Terrans had left. The abandoned bunkers were smashed to flat and the missile turrets sliced into pieces by the Ultralisk front.

The Servant knew that total victory was finally within the Swarm's grasp. Perhaps it would continue to serve long enough to witness final victory. Most members of any species would looks upon themselves with pride, relief, or even sadness, if they had lived through as many great battles as the Servant had. But the Servant could not look upon itself with such feelings. All it could comprehend was obedience, blood lust, and victory. Victory might be within the Swarm's grasp, but the Servant and its brethren had yet to grasp it. And even if total victory was achieved, the Overmind would demand more victories. If the Servant's life did not end with this battle, it service to the Overmind and the Swarm would continue, so the Servant would fight more battles - all for the Overmind's will. A servant of the Swarm's service would never end - with the exception of death. And like all servants, the Servant would fight forever until its life met death.

The final siege of the city itself began. Mutalisks dived behind the walls blasting away at Terrans and equipment, while Overlords secured Zerglings in their ventral sacs and lifted them over the walls and into the city itself. Guardians bombarded the city with volleys of acid, while dozens of Defilers wormed their way to the front and began spraying toxic spores all over the walls. The combined bio-chemical assault from the above and below slowly corroded and consumed the last structural barrier between the Terrans and the Zerg. With parts of the walls weakening by the second, the Ultralisks began ramming their tusks at the areas of decay. The metal framework began to bend, splinter, and crack. In a pathetic attempt to stop the inevitable, Marines formed up on the walls and opened fire into the Zerg using rocket launchers, grenades, lasers, assault rifles, handguns, and even large pieces of metal debris. But they might as well have tried to stop a tidal wave with a bucket. The Servant and its brothers responded to this ineffective defense by releasing a storm of spines at the defending marines. Even with only one shoulder plate functional, the Servant could still kill from a distanc. A single well-aimed spine from the Servant cleaved straight through a Terran's head. The bleeding, virtually headless body slumped backwards from the walls out of sight. Another Terran fell dead with a spine embedded in a lung, and another in his heart - compliments of the Servant itself. Seconds later, four more Terrans fell victim to the Servant's wrath. Within minutes, the Servant and its brothers had systemically eradicated more than half of the Marines. Some of the survivors continued to resist - and soon found themselves impaled with Hydralisk-grown spines. But most of the surviving marines fled the walls, no doubt trying to escape with their lives. Such fools they were - for no race escaped the fury of the Swarm.

Meanwhile the framework of the walls finally gave way in several sections. The main gate itself simply collapsed under an endless bombardment of acid globs and toxic spores. A message from Araq through the Overlords entered the Servant's mind. As usual processed the message as a simple command: _The walls have been breached at last! Now, children of the Overmind, move forward and purify all resistance before you! Take this city for the Swarm!_

The Servant let loose a battle shriek, as did every other Zerg warrior. Then every ground and airborne warrior advanced forward and began the final journey to total victory. As the Servant stormed the city grounds, it began searching for living victims. It didn't have to wait long, for a Firebat suddenly jumped out from behind a pile of barrels and released a wave a flames at the Servant less than four feet away. Two Zerglings next to the Servant were smelted instantly, but the Servant's armored shell withstood the heat. Hissing with malice, the Servant raised its remaining claw and brought it down upon the Terran's chest, ripping straight through the useless suit. Lifting the corpse up, the Servant brought clamped its jaws around the bloody wreck. Instantly, the refreshing taste of blood washed over its senses, and for over half a minute the Servant did nothing but savor the taste of human blood. Then when its need for blood was temporarily satisfied ,it joined a pack of twenty-three other fellow Hydralisks, and began scouting an unexplored corridor in search for resistance and more blood.

The Servant and its brothers slithered through the corridor, cutting down the meager resistance consisting of a few Marines and computer-controlled sentry guns. Then the Servant caught scent of something fresh and tantalizing, as did the other Hydralisks. It was the undeniable aroma of blood from a wounded humans - somewhere right around the next corner. The Hydralisk pack increased their movement rate and snaked around the corner and came upon a large, white dome structure. Creeping forward, the Servant noticed an odd, large marking inscribed upon the dome - two red lines perpendicularly bisecting each other. But this marking did not matter, for now the Servant and the others could smell not one but almost a hundred wounded Terrans within the structure. Instantly, the sounds of explosions and screams fellow deaf on the Hydralisks. The irresistible feast within the white dome had driven the Servant and its brothers' blood lust higher than ever before in the services. The entire horde swarmed forward and began clawing at the outer structure. Surprisingly, their scythe-like claws ripped apart the barriers with relative ease, and within minutes the Zerg had gained access to the complex.

Had there only been a couple of wounded Terrans inside, the warriors would have conducted the hunt with stealth and silence. The Servant's kind had always preferred to stalk their prey. However with such quantities of fresh blood in the area, such preferences were cast aside. Crawling as fast as possible into the complex, they instantly homed in on the very source of the blood - a large room near the center. Moving across the steel floor, slashing or knocking aside any object within their way, the Servant and its comrades reached the room, ripped the door off its hinges, and stormed in to find....nothing!

There were no wounded humans, only dozens of tables, attached by small metal poles to the walls and floor. The tables were covered in layers of some strange fiber; some of these fiber layers were stained with human blood. But mere blood stains could not have given off such a powerful aroma. Even stranger, the Servant could still smell the wounded humans. They were close...very close...they must be hiding somewhere in the room. But the Servant and its brothers soon discovered there was nowhere for the Terrans to hide. The Hydralisks carefully combed every spot in the room, yet they still could not find any injured prey. Snarling with frustration and rage, the blood-starved Hydralisks began smashing the tables and ripping apart the walls and ceiling. The Servant itself lashed out at the floor with its right claw repeatedly in fury until a hole had been cut straight through.

Then the aroma of blood grew even more powerful than before. The Servant traced the source instantly to the hole it had made in the floor - and the scent was slowly moving away. The wounded Terrans must have been hiding underneath the floor, no doubt trying to escape! In a frenzy greater than ever, the Servant gave a hiss of rage and began ripping apart the metallic floor plating, as did its brethren. Loud screams of human terror and sounds of frantic movement confirmed the Servant's suspicions. Ripping up more metal plate, it rammed its claw into the hole and struck something - followed by a scream of agony. The Servant eagerly lifted up its prize and let its jaws down upon the bleeding body's torso. As it drained the delicious life fluid from the corpse, two of its brothers greedily tore the corpse's lower half hanging from the Servant's mouth, and began feasting over the legs. An individual from another species might have turned on its companions for this act, but the Servant did not. They were all brothers and they all shared a common purpose - to serve the Overmind and the Swarm.

The other Hydralisks were also lashing out into holes in the floor with their claws and teeth, sometimes missing, but other times retrieving fresh kills. Most of the victims caught were killed instantly, but a few were pulled up wiggling and screaming futilely before the teeth of death silenced their cries. None could escape the fury of the Zerg. From the holes in the floor, a few Terrans fired at their attackers with handguns - a useless gesture - for the tiny bullets merely bounced of the Zerg armored shells. Such attempted defense was also very foolish, for the humans wasted their precious energy fighting instead of getting away - not that they would get far anyway. None could escape the wrath of the Zerg.

Having suck its first catch dry, the Servant raised its claw to fish out a new victim. But then the floor plates in front of it. Even more shockingly, a youngish, dark-haired human male sprang out of the hole and froze just meters away from the Servant. The Servant expected the Terran to run in terror, but surprisingly the Terran did not. Instead, he pulled out a small metal blade and began waving the weapon as if challenging the Servant. Looking into the human's eyes, the Servant saw not fear, but rather anger and determination. Never before had the Servant encountered a Terran with such quality in the eyes. But this did not matter, for this Terran still had fresh blood, and the Servant would soon be dining on it. The little artificial blade was no match for the Servant's own claw that had been evolved for war. Human defiance could not hope to compete with the fury of the Zerg. Darting out with its claw, the Servant pinned the defiant Terran to the floor. The Terran struck the Servant's head repeatedly with his little blade, but it proved useless against the Servant's armor. Six of the Servant's brothers swarmed into take a share of the blood. Swiftly the Servant's jaws ripped the Terran's arm clutching the knife, and warm human blood trickled down the Servant's tongue was more. The taste seemed more exquisite and delicious than ever. Still savoring the taste the Servant stared down at the helpless human and suddenly saw something that nearly made the taste dissolve from its tongue.

The Terran was now clutching a small black cylinder that began flashing red. The Servant heard a familiar beeping sound and sensed what was coming in the next few seconds - the end. The end of its life. The end of its service. But the Servant did not try to flee. Such action would be useless since it would never escape the blast in time. Instead, the Servant continued to savor the blood of its prey and soon-to-be-slayer. Despite having survived many battles, the Servant had been expecting death every moment from the instance it was produced. All Zerg servants lived, served, died, and were replaced. Death for a Zerg servant was a sacrifice that had to be made if the Swarm was fulfill its ultimate destiny. Although the Servant would now never witness the Swarm's victory, it was certain that its millions of brethren outside would achieve it. The Zerg had always triumphed and they always would.

As the pitch of the beeping grew higher and the red light flashed faster, the Servant spent a few of its last moments trying to comprehend this Terran's action. The Terran would definitely die, as would the Servant and probably all of its brothers in the room. But the loss of twenty-four Hydralisks would not cripple the Swarm in any way. The hive clusters could instantly replace them all. The Servant than considered the possibility of that the Terran was sacrificing itself to save his wounded comrades. The Terrans under the floor might survive the blast, but their chances were still low. Even if they did survive and get out of the building, it was unlikely that they would survive the millions of Zerg warriors storming the city. And even if those Terrans escaped from the planet, where would they run? The Swarm would soon spread through out this sector and eventually the rest of the galaxy, devouring all in their path - including the fleeing Terrans. These Terrans could not run or hide from the inevitable. What was the point of this self-destruction? It would not damage the Swarm, nor could it save the Terrans from their doom. This act of human defiance served no purpose or meaning. Why would this Terran act in a way that would never benefit his race?

The Servant could not understand such behavior, but it's mind had never been designed to comprehend reasoning or motives of an enemy. Its mind had only understood obedience and bloodlust. Casting aside such unanswerable questions, the Servant turned its attention back to the human flesh still in its mouth, enjoying the precious blood that seeped onto its thick tongue. The Servant's mind slipped into a bliss of content and satisfaction, and did not react when the black cylinder's droning whine came to a sudden halt and the red light ceased flashing. The Servant couldn't have cared much more when microseconds later the device shattered an issued a titanic wave of flames. The raging inferno instantly encased the Servant within, while the concussion shock splintered and tore its battle-hardened body. But any sense of pain or sound was drowned out of the Servant's mind by the savorous and overwhelming taste of blood. And then as the explosion continued to swell across the room, its hungry fires proceeded to consume all within its burning grasp. Thus came the end of the Servant's service to the Overmind and the Swarm.

The End.

A/N: So, what do you think? I'm considering writing a sequel to this, except that it will be from the Terrans' POV.


End file.
